My Mother has been in a Nursing Home for over 2 1/2 yrs and in Hospice for 6 months now and has been on Medicaid since entering Hospice Care.Before Hospice/Medicaid - Medicare & her supplementary insurance covered the first 100 days of her Nursing home bills. A person must leave / be home for 2 months in order for Medicare to start paying once again so this leaves my Mother with 20 + months of unpaid for care. My Mother does own a Condo which is in half my sisters name but her dept is well over $100,000 combining medical & personal finances. Dept collectors are everywhere and they are correct to be asking to be paid, she is being served with papers in Hospice care which while sleazy its all legit. I know I need to speak with a bankruptcy attorney & I am in the process of doing that now. I am just trying to get some questions together for the attorney. I know bankruptcy will cover her bills presently but what about future medical expenses & how does this affect medicaid ? Thanks in advance !

5 Comments

You should check the credit laws for medical in your home state. In New Jersey unpaid medical bills after 6 years do not need to be paid and the medical company has to write them off. In New Mexico it is 4 yrs. not many people are aware of these laws but they do exist. The same laws exist for certain credit debt. good luck!

My guess is no, too. You mean protect it from Medicaid Recovery after she dies? Rather than a bankruptcy attorney, I wonder if you would be better off talking to an Elder Law attorney, specifically about protecting your sister's interest in the condo.

jeannegibbs, Thanks for your reply. The medicaid application took over 1 year to be approved and was a mini nightmare dealing with them. Im hoping by filing bankruptcy I can protect my mothers 1/2 of her condo, my guess is no but just exploring my options. Thanks again !

I can't figure out why she'd file bankruptcy. She's on Medicaid and on Hospice. Yes, the firms she owes money to deserve to be paid, but they are not going to get paid whether she files for bankruptcy or she just ignores them. Ignoring them is cheaper. It is not as if she is going to get a job and they can start garnishing her wages.

If she is already on Medicaid her debts and bankruptcy should not impact that, I would think.

I'm curious. Why did she wait so long to apply for Medicaid? And didn't the nursing home suggest that when she started missing payments to them?

I hope someone with more legal knowledge stops by and answers your questions. Poor Mom on hospice and getting served papers!

The material of this web site is provided for informational purposes only. AgingCare.com does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment; or legal, or financial or any other professional services advice.